


Time & Again

by Boji



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: M/M, Originally Posted on LiveJournal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-06-27
Updated: 2005-06-27
Packaged: 2017-10-06 05:33:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/50186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Boji/pseuds/Boji
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>How do you meet the man you love for the first time... again?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Time & Again

**Author's Note:**

> After _The Parting of the Ways_ I found myself itching to write post episodic fic. The result is this fix-it.

Being a time agent means that strange fucked-up situations usually have your number. But this? This was a doozy. How do you meet the man you love for the first time... again? The man who given half a chance might have loved you, if he didn't love her first? The man who you laughed with, joked with, flirted with and only kissed the once.

I'm not the nervous type. At least I wasn't, not before I met him. Wasn't one to pace and rub my sweaty palms against my thighs. Do that when you're wearing leather and you just get sweaty paw prints everywhere. Other people get nervous. Other people get performance anxiety. Me? I used to get the gal, or the guy, make the deal and split. Only, I hadn't gotten the guy and well, splitting didn't seem to be on the cards either, not anymore. That was why I was standing in a plush VIP accommodation suite, preening in a mirror. Dressed in a grey-blue shirt, made of some silk derivative, hair gelled to perfection, I looked damn hot. Felt all of about fourteen. How do you meet the man you love, knowing you're a stranger to him?

A temporal paradox is usually a migraine inducing bitch. Stone cold sober they don't bear thinking about. But well, there didn't seem to be a mini bar in this swanky suite and I wasn't going to ask my hosts if they had alcohol with them, or even if they fermented it personally, in-house so to speak.

Hosts. Well it's a word. Rescuers would be better. True too.

When was your number up? Mine rolled on floor five hundred of a space station, as a psychotic tin-pot zapped me to death. I remember the pain right before dying. I remember catching my breath sharply and then nothing. Zip. Zilch. Nada.

And, although it happened right about here, it happened then. Or, well... I told you time is a doozy. Time's as fickle and as wonderful as luck. She's flexible, infinite, wise and open to possibilities. Which is why I'm here. Why I'm not dead and dust on the floor. Why I'm getting a chance to meet him again, for the first time. God, what if he thinks I'm an ass? What if I am an ass?

What was it I said before I kissed him? "I was better off as a coward."

Yeah well, what are you supposed to say when you're chancing your arm for the only kiss you might ever get? Especially if you figure you're as good as dead. And I was, we all were. Mowed down by the approaching Dalek army. Which is why it was a fucking miracle to wake up ... alive.

I came to, to the most wonderful sound in the whole frigging world. And the most horrible. I heard the TARDIS whoosh and roar away. I heard them leave me. I knew then that I was meant to be deader than, what? He'd say a door-nail. I don't know what was worse, that I died, or that they left me.

He left me.

Funnily enough, dying was a breeze compared to how I felt in those moments, compared to standing, utterly alone in the middle of a deserted floor five hundred, looking at a delta-wave bomb that was rigged up and ready to go, with no one to push the plunger. Not that there were any Daleks around either. Could have sworn they won and we were alien-chow. Then again could have sworn a lot of things on a stack of bibles.

As I stood there in the empty control room, trying to take stock of the situation, trying to think of finding rations and securing my position, I heard footsteps. Booted footsteps that got louder as I waited. My newly restarted heart had thumped against my ribs and I'd wondered, crazily, if someone else had survived; thought maybe I wasn't standing in a rotating space morgue, unarmed, out of ammo and unsure about where I'd actually dropped the machine gun.

"We who are about to die... again." It's a good line to mutter to yourself, when you're awaiting your doom, on repeat. And, well it's an apt thing to say to your reflection, five minutes before D-Day. Doctor day.

The door swished open behind me and I could hear the same booted footsteps, muffled by carpet. I turned and smiled. God she was beautiful. Did nothing for me, but Lord she was beautiful.

"Captain Jack Harkness, I presume?" she asked with a smile.

The same words she'd said to me several centuries earlier, as we stood several floors above this one. Though she hadn't been wearing a red brocade ball gown then. No, my savior had been wearing dark trousers, a waistcoat and a shirt very similar to the one she'd gifted me with, right before telling me bluntly that I'd better get my bod in the shower.

"Your highness." I bowed awkwardly.

"Please, I gave you leave to call me Jabe."

Jabe of the Tree People of Cheem. Princess, diplomat, savior of reprobate fly-boys. I'd known she was royalty from the first moment she'd introduced herself. How did I know? It's something in the stance. And believe me I know, I've tried hard enough to fake it. The two guards who were escorting her just clinched the deal.

"Did I thank you, your highness?" I asked, memory scrambled by death and a sizeable time jump. "For..."

"You don't have anything to thank me for - yet, Captain. After all, I do have a vested interest in hoping that what was prophesied will not come to pass."

She sat on the bed and patted the coverlet, much like she'd touched my arm when she'd first introduced herself, trying to reassure me that she was legit, that I had a reason to get off the tin can of death and go with her.

"You are apprehensive," Jabe said quietly.

"Who me? Nah." No conviction there Jack, none. I was glad I'd turned my back to the mirror. My face? I knew it was a dead giveaway.

"Time is your friend, Captain. It was she who knew that it was not time for your dust to blow in the winds. She who wanted you to have your chance."

"I could tell you that I don't believe in signs and portents, Princess," I said.

"You could. But you came with me across the time stream, did you not?"

He'd left me. I would have gone anywhere, with anyone. And Jabe was easy on the eye, even if she did greet me with full political protocol, while we stood in the midst of a deserted battlefield. Not that I really got what she was saying when she started in about her people, time-streams, tree roots and infinite possibilities. I just followed. I never imagined she planned to bring me... here.

"He died?" I asked, shuddering despite myself.

"You both did. And in the time line in which life was not restored to you, our world and many others, burnt like his once did. No more forests, no more oceans. Life is resilient and yet as fragile as a butterfly wing. Just like love."

I knew then that she could see everything. Pain. Loss. Longing. I'd spent years on various continents and a whole bunch of planets, honing my poker face. One look in his eyes and it was gone, crumbling like a paper mask left to soak in a puddle. Before him, I would have flirted, smiled, bantered and touched lightly, making not too subtle comments about liana, but now? Even flirting seemed pointless.

"He died." I couldn't get past that. As if he wouldn't be alive until I saw him again with my own eyes.

"Captain, we all die but it doesn't have to be on a set day. You know this." Did they breed Royalty this calm, or was it drummed in with lessons on political etiquette?

"We'll have to go back and destroy the Emperor Dalek before he builds the fleet." I said, trying to wrap my head around the fact that this future time-line still existed. "Seed ideas that should be left to flourish into the fourth bountiful human empire. Save the girl." Quipping is easy. Emotions? They're the doozy. Hence the hyperactive butterflies in my stomach.

"Get the guy," Jabe said gently.

I snorted, "Do you really think I'll get that lucky?" Whatever was worse than a bad case of stage fright, that's what I was suffering from.

"Time is full of infinite possibilities Captain."

 

I tried to hold on to that belief as we walked into the observation lounge, Jabe walking ahead, with me slightly to her left and the entourage two steps behind.

Ever thought your heart would actually stop beating, without someone putting a bullet in it? I did, when I saw him standing there across the room. Black leather jacket, burgundy v-neck jumper, boots that I'd seen, day in and day out, propped up on the TARDIS console. We walked across the room. I could barely make out the different conversations as blood roared in my ears.

'Steady on, Jack. All you have to do is say hello, say hello and keep it together,' I thought to myself. I exhaled slowly, then straightened up and strolled confidently through the throng of beings. Fake it till you make it. It's a good motto, covers a multitude of... positions.

A voice on the tannoy counted down to Earth Death in thirty minutes, as we approached the Doctor. Standing next to him, wide eyed and looking even younger than I remembered from earlier that day, was Rose. Before I could open my mouth to say anything, Jabe was making introductions, her delicate but strong hand pushing me forward towards the Doctor.

"On behalf of the tree people of Cheem, I bring you a displaced friend as a gift of peace." She was smiling brightly.

The Doctor tilted his head and looked at me, his ears sticking out just as I remembered, his wonderfully expressive eyes locked on mine.

"Have we met then?" he asked, in beautiful confusion.

"Depends on when then is," I said. "Depends on when you're counting from. In this linear time line, no, we haven't met." You ever been thankful that your words don't trip over your tongue?

"I'm the Doctor and that's Rose, she's my plus one." He grinned broadly.

Lucky, lucky Rose. It didn't matter that I was late, that I'd never be his plus one. Even his friendship would be a gift beyond, oh just about everything. I've stared death in the face and seen the abyss, so believe me when I tell you he's it, at least for me.

I know I made some gesture in Rose's direction when he introduced her, but I couldn't take my eyes off him. He'd say I looked daft. What was it? Oh yes, a right plonker, standing there with my eyes glowing and a grin wide enough to crack my face open. He'd be right.

"Jack, Captain Jack Harkness. Formerly of... oh just about everywhere and nowhere."

"Traveller?" he asked, curiosity piqued. The slight, welcoming smile on his face was just for me.

Jabe cleared her throat loudly.

"What?" The Doctor asked in irritation. "Oh right the gift of peace." He turned back to face me. "I bring you the air from my lungs," he said exhaling gently.

"How wonderfully intimate!" Jabe was almost giddy with glee, but I guess trying to change your life line will do that to you. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see that she had linked arms with Rose and was gently leading her over to one side of the room.

Rose was muttering something about how she should have known... something, about how all the best ones were either married or...

"So, you here with the Tree People of Cheem?" the Doctor asked, drowning out whatever Rose was saying.

"They got me out of a difficult situation." I swallowed then blinked hard, as I felt my eyes get suspiciously bright. "Damn. Sorry. It was earlier today, depending on how you look at it. I'm not, I haven't ...." Post NDE's? Tears are pretty much standard issue. I was just wishing my emotions would get off the roller-coaster they were on.

A steady hand was on my arm, and gently but forcibly, the Doctor was leading me over to the side of the room. I sat on a wall ledge. He crouched down in front of me, his back shielding me slightly from the shindig going on around us. The blue-skinned steward hovered with a drinks tray. We ignored him.

"Injury?" the Doctor asked, pulling the sonic screwdriver out of his pocket.

"Death. Nothing like regeneration to put a swing back in your step."

That stilled him, his hand on my arm, the expression in his eyes terrible in its understanding.

"I... it was a war zone, you know how it is." He did, I knew he did. I stuck my hand out again. "Captain Jack Harkness." I shook my head slightly "It's wonderful to meet you..."

"Again." He spoke the word I wouldn't voice. "Who are you Captain Jack Harkness?" he asked.

Was his voice like a caress because I loved him, or just because of the type of man he is? I throttled hope and possibility. Friendship was a gift. That was what I had to focus on.

"Traveller, time agent, currently awol..." As I spoke, he scanned me with the super-sonic gizmo. "Could tell you I'm a terrific lay." What can I say? I'm good at self sabotage.

"You could," he stated, grinning.

"Would that cheapen things, or liven them up?" I asked, stepping back onto familiar flirtatious ground.

"Yes." That cheeky grin, an answer that wasn't any kind of answer. And then, "You here to see the end of the world?" he asked.

"Wasn't really my main interest no. Been there, done that - from just about here - so that does me for all foreseeable futures. Make sense?"

"No and yes."

The sonic screwdriver whirred and beeped. He looked down at the reading and then looked up at me, his gorgeous eyes capturing mine. Ever seen dawn break after six months of winter? That's how his smile looked to me just then.

"So Jack, is that a TARDIS key in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?"

I took a drink off a passing tray and gulped down half. "I died here. Could tell you I kissed you here," I quipped.

"In a corner of the observation deck?"

"Floor five hundred actually," I said.

"Was it a good kiss then, Captain Jack Harkness? Was I, worth it?" he asked, moving to stand.

"Definitely owe you a drink," I said, looking around to see if I could spot the refreshments tray coming round again.

"You owe me a kiss as well, considering you remember that one and I don't." Full of surprises is the Doctor.

"My pleasure," I was grinning stupidly again, "right after we stop the dried face-pack over there from sabotaging the station with mechanical spiders." I waved my hand in the general direction of Lady Cassandra. "Oh and save a Princess."

"That how it went down before?" The Doctor asked.

"Not one hundred percent sure. Wasn't here last time round. Jabe... Jabe helped you save, everyone. Rose told me that later, on those nights you went walking round empty corridors and we couldn't sleep."

"So, you've got my back, is that it?" The Doctor asked.

"Always." It was true, I'd guard him and follow him anywhere. Already had, always would.

He'd titled his head slightly and I was just wondering how he'd react if I leant in and stole another kiss when,

"Didn't anyone tell you two, it's rude to canoodle in corners?" Rose had walked up behind us and was standing there looking either amused - and trying to hide it - or else fucked off. "Some of the nibbly bits taste like ham. Not bad, and well, you'd tell me if they were poisonous wouldn't you Doctor?" Rose asked, before turning to face me. "I'm Rose, Rose Tyler," she said. "And you're..."

I stood and we shook hands. "Captain..."

"Rose, Jack, Jack, Rose. And now that we've all met again, when did you say the stations going to blow?" The Doctor asked me suddenly.

The voice on the tannoy announcing Earth Death in twenty minutes cut me off for a moment. Rose paused and then yelped slightly.

"Doctor, did he just say there was a bomb on board?" she asked, just as a tremor shook the station.

"There are spider-bots in the ventilation system, it's overheating and the sun-shields are being overridden."

"Right then, how did it go?" the Doctor asked. "Save the Princess, buy me a drink and then we'll get to that kiss you owe me" he grinned manically. "Rose stay here would you? Jack, you're with me."

"What, you two are just going to swan off and save the day with no plan or nuthing?" Rose asked.

"Yup." The Doctor said. "Fantastic isn't it?"

As he held his hand out to me, I couldn't help but agree.

 

The End


End file.
